PA Workers Compensation Reform Act of 1996
On June 24, 1996, a new PA workers compensation act known as Act 57 of 1996 was signed into law. According to Governor Ridge, the purpose of Act 57 was:
- to get injured workers back to work faster after they recover
- to pay only legitimate claimants
- to make certain that workers compensation payments are similar to what the worker was making before the injury
- to reduce the costs of handling workers compensation claims
- to guarantee that savings are passed directly to the employers who pay the workers compensation insurance premiums
Instead of helping injured Pennsylvania workers, Act 57 actually hurts injured workers because of the following changes:
Reduction of payments
- If you are an injured worker and are receiving other payments in addition to workers compensation (pensions, severance pay, or old age Social Security), one of the payments can be reduced. You don't get full payment from both payment sources.
- For more information, see Other Benefits in Addition to PA workers compensation.
Temporary Total Disability Limit
- As an injured worker, you can only receive payments for temporary total disability for 104 weeks at the longest.
- After 104 weeks pass, you could possibly receive partial disability payments of the same amount for an additional 500 weeks - for a total of 604 weeks.
- The only exception to this new policy is if your injury affects at least 50% of your entire body.
General Proof of Available Jobs
- Prior to Act 57, employers were required to show specific job referrals. Now, all they need to show is general proof that jobs are available.
Company Doctors
- Injured workers must seek treatment from a doctor chosen by their employer for the 90 days of their treatment. This doctor is called a "company doctor".
Change in Determining the Average Weekly Wage.
The following changes to the average weekly wage is for all injuries that occurred on or after June 24, 1996.
- Before Act 57, the payment an injured worker would receive for lost earnings had to be determined in the most favorable way for the injured worker. In other words, your highest quarter of earnings was used to determine your PA workers compensation payment.
- After Act 57, the payment you receive for lost earnings is now based on the average of the highest three quarters of your previous year of employment.
Employee Must Report Wages
- Act 57 requires you to report wages and to prove that you are still injured and are still losing wages. If not reported, you could lose your PA workers compensation payments and could be prosecuted in a criminal court.
Criminal Prosecutions
- Act 57 made it a criminal offense if an injured worker does not report wages or complete and return proof of ongoing disability and wage loss.
- Act 57 also makes it a crime to receive total disability benefits while you are working. It is also a crime to receive partial disability benefits greater than what is allowed based on the what you are earning.
- A prosecutor now has five years to prosecute workers compensation fraud.
PA's workers compensation law has become difficult to understand. If you don't have a lawyer to help you with your workers compensation claim, the deck is stacked against you. Let our PA workers compensation lawyers help you today.
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